Enchanted Forest

I knew as soon as I stepped outside that it was not just any day. It was Sunday, but not even like any other Sunday; the sky was deep blue and the Springtime air was dead still. No birds sang, no Ravens called, no leaves blew, and for a while, no cars went down our road. It was unusually quiet out.

So I woke everyone up and announced that this was the day we'd find the crystal mine north of Ward Lake. They didn't care much for the idea right away, but it's normal for them to not like the places we go until we get there - I'm pretty sure it's a rule for being a teenager. My husband is a late sleeper by nature, but mornings for him are more slow than opposing. They rambled out of the sack and got ready while I packed up our lunches and snacks for the dogs, making sure everyone had their first cup of coffee before anyone had enough time to really speak to one another. The weather was nice so we took the top off the Bronco.

Coming around the bends in the dusty gravel road lent us sporadic views of the giant snowy crags in the not-so-far-off distance, making me wonder how I ever could have considered moving away from here. It must have been a crazy, passing thought that I'm now over. But, I needed to watch the road for where to go, only having the kind of directions that said, ‘Go past the shooting range and take the road going uphill from Old Man's Hole, and there's gonna be several Y's in the road, just stick to your left until the seventh one. There you take the right fork and when you pass the eagle's nest you know you're on the right road, and then it's two more clicks and you're there.'

Not far ahead we disturbed a lunching Eagle who dropped his meal in the brush as he flew to a nearby tree branch, and then sat as if he were posing to pacify us and hurry us along our way. He was so obliging and beautiful, and I raised my lense and aimed very carefully, even holding my breath before pushing the button, only to find my camera batteries were dead. I rushed back to the Bronco to change the batteries, but Eagle had enough of our puny human games and left his stash in the brush to be gotten another time.

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